when your kids get sick, everything stops

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And with a very late blog post for the day;

These past few days have been rough.

Xander caught Hand, Foot, and Mouth disease from daycare and just like that — my whole world paused.

The rash. The crankiness.

But what hit me the hardest wasn’t the sickness itself — it was the sacrifice that came with it.

Because as a single parent, when your child gets sick, it’s not just a health issue.

It’s a daycare call.

It’s a canceled shift.

It’s lost income.

It’s rearranging your entire life — alone.

No backup.

No co-parent to switch shifts with.

And the guilt? It hits from every direction.

  1. Guilt for missing work to be there for him and not being able to provide the way I want.
  2. Guilt for even wanting to send him back to daycare just so I can breathe.
  3. Guilt for feeling frustrated when I know he’s the one who’s really suffering.

It’s a constant tug-of-war between doing what’s right for him and trying to keep myself — and my life — from falling apart.

People think it’s just a rash. Just a virus. Just a few days at home.

But they don’t see the mental load.

They don’t see me calculating how much I’ll lose on this paycheck.

Or how much diapers, wipes, or gas I could’ve bought with it.

They don’t see me crying in the bathroom because I just need one damn break.

Daycares have every right to protect other kids — I get that.

But every time something like this happens, it just reminds me that this system wasn’t built for single parents.

It wasn’t built for moms with no fallback plan.

It wasn’t built for us.

It takes a village for a reason.

🫶🏽 To Any Mom Feeling This Too…

If you’re choosing between staying home or paying your bills…

If you’re feeling isolated and angry and overwhelmed…

If you’ve cried more than once this week…

You’re not alone.

You’re not a bad mom.

You’re just a mom doing what she has to do — in a world that rarely gives us grace.


With tired eyes and a full heart,

Anjelize

The Life of Curls and Chaos

Comments

  1. Belle10 July 2025 at 08:05

    You are an AMAZING mom and you will get through this obstacle that has been thrown in your way!

    ReplyDelete

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